Showing posts with label FamilySearch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FamilySearch. Show all posts

Saturday, October 10, 2020

VGS News & Events: October 11 through October 17, 2020

Learn more about the seminar here...

For the foreseeable future, The Villages Genealogical Society will continue to conduct virtual monthly general meetings using our GoToWebinar facilities and they will be recorded. Many SIG's have access to Zoom Video Communications for their meetings.  The most accurate list of up coming meetings can be found on our website under "Coming Events."

Zoom access information will not be posted on our website for security reasons. Contact the SIG coordinator directly for Zoom meeting access information.

Coming Events:
Monday, October 12
Italian Genealogy SIG Meeting
1:00 pm
Online Zoom Meeting
Mary Frances Gerace, Coordinator
Monday, October 12
Monday Evening Webinar “Genealogical Gems Found in Ledgers” 
7:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Online Webinar

Our guest speaker will be: Diane L Richard, MosaicRPM 

Tuesday, October 13
Preserving Family History SIG Meeting
2:30 pm
Online Zoom Meeting
Nancy Schultz and Sharol Lewin, Coordinators
Topic: "Sharing More Ideas about Organizing to Write Your Family Stories" with Phil Goldsmith and Paul Clark
Wednesday, October 14
New to Genealogy SIG Meeting
2:30 pm
Online Zoom Meeting
Carol LaSalle, Coordinator
For Members with less than 2 years of genealogy experience.
Topic: "Genealogy Software"
Friday, October 16
Scandinavian Genealogy SIG Meeting
10:00 am
Online Zoom Meeting
Ken Bowgren, Per Andersson and Kris Petersen-Gauthier Co-coordinators
No meeting information

Gen News and Announcements:

New Free Historical Records on FamilySearch: Week of 5 October 2020

FamilySearch
"Discover more of your German roots in 8M new German Catholic Church records added online at FamilySearch this week for Germany, Württemberg, Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart (1520–1975) and Germany, Hessen–Nassau, Diocese of Limburg (1601–1919), along with 4M new Find A Grave Index records and 700K Chihuahua, Mexico church records. Other country collections expanded were Brazil, Canada, France, Peru, S. Africa and Sweden; and United States collections (California, Hawaii, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Virginia and Washington). "  

23andMe Changes – Download Matches Now or Lose Many

DNAeXplained
"Recently, 23andMe implemented a new subscription model. In their new model, which requires retesting (with a new sample) on the V5 chip, you can pay a yearly subscription fee of $29 to receive up to 4500 matches.
The subscription service is by invitation, which you can see at this link... "

FamilySearch Updates Its Genealogies Search Page:

FamilySearch
"For 125 years, the Genealogy Society of Utah and its successor, FamilySearch International, have collected genealogies submitted through earlier research programs or created by partners and other societies. These genealogies are available online in Genealogies under the Search tab on FamilySearch.org. To further serve FamilySearch users, the Search options on the Genealogies search page have been updated."  

Neanderthal Genes May Be to Blame in Some Severe Coronavirus Cases:

CNN Health
"A team of experts on Neanderthal genetics examined a strand of DNA that has been associated with some of the more serious cases of Covid-19 and compared it to sequences known to have been passed down to living Europeans and Asians from Neanderthal ancestors."  

3 Biggest Mistakes in Genealogy Research:

Amy Johnson Crow
"Let’s be honest. We all make mistakes in our genealogy, whether it’s misreading a document or drawing an incorrect conclusion. But the mistakes in how we actually do our research can lead to bigger brick walls, fewer discoveries, and more frustration. Here are the 3 biggest mistakes in genealogy research. "

Technology:

10 Awesome Windows 10 Desktop Tips and Tricks

How-to Geek
"The Windows 10 desktop is more than just a glorified folder—it’s a reflection of your personality. You can decorate it with wallpaper, cover it with your favorite shortcuts, or even play games on it. Here are 10 tips and tricks that will make your desktop experience more useful and fun."

Education:

Do You Have Mayflower Ancestry? Here is How to Prove It

Ancestral Findings
"Are you a Mayflower descendant, or do you think you may be one? You have to do the research to make sure because a lot of families have a "Mayflower ancestor" myth. Join me today and as I show you how to gather the evidence to make sure you can claim that Mayflower ancestor as your own family."
Listen now...  8.13 minutes

Webinars:

Dealing with Endogamy:

Legacy Family Tree
"General rules of DNA inheritance assume independent genealogical lines. However, cases of endogamy, pedigree collapse and multiple levels of relationship to any given genetic match merit additional considerations for analysis and interpretation. Explore strategies such as segment analysis, targeted testing, anchoring, and variable segment thresholds for overcoming the challenges of endogamy, pedigree collapse or multiple relationships in your DNA test results."
Wednesday, October 14 2020, 8:00pm Eastern
Presenter: Paul Woodbury

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Saturday, October 3, 2020

VGS News & Events: October 4 through October 10, 2020

October is Family History Month - FamilySearch Image
Learn more about the seminar here...

The Villages Genealogical Society will continue to conduct virtual monthly general meetings using our GoToWebinar facilities and they will be recorded. Many SIG's have access to Zoom Video Communications for their meetings.  The most accurate list of up coming meetings can be found on our website under "Coming Events."

Zoom access information will not be posted on our website for security reasons. SIG members will receive an email. Contact the coordinator, through their SIG web page, for the link to this meeting.
 
Coming Events:
Monday, October 5
Jewish Genealogy SIG Meeting
10:00 am
Online Zoom Meeting
Herb Siegel, Coordinator
Phil Goldsmith, Programs
Topic: “Challenges of Jewish Ancestral Research – Names, Dates and Places.” Dr. Jeanette Silverman

Monday, October 5
Italian Genealogy SIG Meeting
1:00 pm
Online Zoom Meeting
Mary Frances Gerace, Coordinator
Monday, October 5
RootsMagic Special Interest Group Meeting
2:30 pm to 4:00 pm
Online Zoom Meeting
Val Harris & George Zitterell Co-Coordinators
Topic: "Understanding Multimedia Files in RootsMagic 7" - Ken Macombe

Tuesday, October 6
Adoption & Mystery Kin SIG Meeting
9:30 am
Online Zoom Meeting
Anne Berg & Marcella Zorn, Co-coordinators
Topic: Member Presentation "Searching My Birth Father"

Wednesday, October 7
French Canadian Genealogy SIG Meeting
9:00 am
Jean Colman, Coordinator
No meeting information as of yet...
Thursday, October 8
German Genealogy SIG Meeting
9:30 am
On Zoom Meeting
Dianne Fedderson & Steven Buhrow, coordinators
 
Friday, October 9
Genetic Genealogy SIG Meeting
10:00 am
Zoom Online Meeting
Sherry Bean and Diann LaRosa, coordinators
Topic:  "Solving Cold Cases Using Genetic Genealogy"
Guest Speaker: Lori Napolitano

Saturday, October 10
African American SIG Monthly Meeting
2:30 pm
Online Zoom Meeting
Carol LaSalle, Coordinator
Topic: "The Underground Railroad" - Annette Burke-Lyttle
 
Gen News and Announcements:

New Free Historical Records on FamilySearch: Week of 28 September 2020

FamilySearch
"More ancestor discoveries will be populating family trees worldwide with FamilySearch's major new historical records additions this week—4M new records from Australia, Victoria Coastal Passenger Lists 1852–1924 and over 3M Boston Massachusetts Tax Records 1822–1918 and New York Land Records 1630–1975. Also from the United States, the Indiana Marriages 1811–2007 collection had 100k additions plus more records for CA, HI, IN, KS, MS, MN, MS, TX, NY, VA, and WA. International, over 600k Bolivia Catholic Church Records 1566-1996, were added, and more for Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Ecuador, England, Mexico, Peru, and S. Africa."  

FamilySearch Hits 8 Billion Searchable Names in Historical Records:

FamilySearch
"Growth is in the roots of FamilySearch. It began 125 years ago (See FamilySearch Celebrates 125th Anniversary) as the Genealogical Society of Utah, with a mere 300 hundred books of family records on its shelves. Now FamilySearch has 3.2 billion digital images, 490,000 digital books, and a Family Tree with over a billion more user-contributed records available online. And it adds over 1 million new records every day."  

MyHeritage Expands its Theory of Family Relativity:

Genealogy's Star

"The Theory of Family Relativity™ harnesses the billions of family tree profiles and historical records on MyHeritage to suggest relationship paths between you and your DNA Matches, potentially saving you dozens of hours of research."  

2 of the Top 3 Paid Genealogy Sites Offer Millions of Records for Free:

Family History Daily
"Subscriptions to the popular paid genealogy sites like Ancestry and MyHeritage can cost hundreds of dollars a year. That’s why, when you discover your fourth-great-grandmother for free, it truly feels like you’ve struck gold! And it’s why we are all about mining the vast genealogy resources on the internet for free records."  

More Editions of the Church of Ireland Gazette Go Online:

Irish Genealogy News
"Following last month's announcement from the RCB Library that post-1949 editions of the Church of Ireland's Gazette would be digitised and released in monthly instalments, the second such tranche has been uploaded for free viewing.  It covers all editions published in 1960 to 1969 inclusive and, as with last month's instalment, it is accompanied by a presentation in the ‘Borderless Church’ series from the Representative Church Body Library."  

FamilySearch New and Updated Collections - September 1-30, 2020

The Ancestor Hunt
"FamilySearch continues to add or update their records collections at a fast pace for us to search. For the period of September 1-30, 2020,  the added/updated collections are:"  

Technology:

How to Resize Images Using Paint 3D on Windows 10:

How-to Geek
"If you need to perform a simple task like resizing an image on your Windows 10 PC, you don’t need to use software with a steep learning curve like Photoshop. You can do it using Microsoft Paint 3D. Here’s how it’s done.
Open Paint 3D on your computer by typing “Paint 3D” in the Windows Search bar and selecting “Paint 3D” from the search results."

Education:

Using the 1890 US Veterans Schedule:

Ancestral Findings
"Did you know that alternative records exist to help you fill in the gaps left by the loss of most of the 1890 US federal census? There are several such sources. One of the most useful, but little use of these sources is the 1890 US Veterans Schedule. Here is what you need to know about it for your genealogy."
Listen now... 5.16 minutes

Webinars:

Advanced DNA Techniques: Deductive Chromosome Mapping:

Legacy Family Tree
"Chromosome mapping is typically achieved by mapping the segments of DNA we share with an identified match. In this lecture, learn how to map segments of DNA that you DO NOT share with a match! Using close relatives such as parents or siblings we can figure out where pieces of DNA came from based on lack of sharing."
Tuesday, October 6, 2020 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Blaine Bettinger, Ph.D., J.D.

Wringing Every Drop out of Y DNA:

Legacy Family Tree
"Step by step, how to utilize Y DNA testing at Family Tree DNA to get the most out of your results. We'll look at little known methods to obtain information, even if your match doesn't have a tree. Wonder about the Big Y test? We'll talk about why that's important and how to benefit from those results. Lastly, we'll discuss projects and using Y DNA in conjunction with autosomal for a slam-dunk."
Wednesday, October 7, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Roberta Estes

From Generation to Generation: An Updated Look at Kinship

Legacy Family Tree
"Proving relationships between generations is an essential skill for genealogists, and one that has to be demonstrated for certification in the Kinship Determination Project. Get an updated review of this three-generation narrative linking family members from generation to generation. Presented as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series, and sponsored by the Board for Certification of Genealogists."
Thursday, October 8, 2020 at Noon Eastern
Presenter: Judy G. Russell, JD, CG, CGL

Geo-Genealogy as a Problem-Solving Tool: The Case of a 19th-Century Female Teenage Immigrant

Legacy Family Tree
"Evidence for the home-country origins of 19th-century immigrants can be hard to find. This lecture illustrates how 3-D genealogy (associations, geography, and time), including an expansive geographical search in American records can produce a tight geographical focus in home-county records, leading to the birth family of a single, teenage girl who landed at New Orleans in 1845. Enjoy a research cruise up and down the Mississippi to gather clues leading to Dena’s German birthplace. Presented as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series, and sponsored by the Board for Certification of Genealogists."
Thursday, October 8, 2020 at 1:15p.m. Eastern
Presenter: J. H. (Jay) Fonkert, CG

Spanning 150 Years of Record Loss: A Methodological Approach to Identifying Parents in Sweden

Legacy Family Tree
"Swedish records are rarely lost to fire. Churches built of brick and a lack of conflict within the country have made most records available and continuous back to the late 1600s. Elna Johansdotter married Troed Pehrsson, but not in the parish where she raised her children and died. Swedish women usually marry in their home parish, but live in the parish of their husband. Where was Elna born and who were her parents? Available record sets consisted of 1 book of parish records which ended in 1716; the gap-ridden mantals tax records, an annual recording of the heads of household and their taxable obligations; and the probate documents, the latter available only if the court ordered an inventory to occur. Squeezing all information out of the limited record sets available resulted in a successful identification of the parents of Elna. The records sets available may differ but the methodologies used to identify the parents of Elna are transferable, whether in Sweden, the United States or elsewhere. Presented as part of the Joy Reisinger Memorial Lecture Series, and sponsored by the Board for Certification of Genealogists."
Thursday, October 08, 2020, 2:30pm Eastern
Presenter: Jill Morelli, CG

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Saturday, August 22, 2020

VGS News & Events: August 23 through August 29, 2020

Practice Social-Distancing


Due to Covid-19, no Rec Center meetings until further notice. Some SIG's are having virtual meetings. Be on the lookout for emails announcing the meetings and how to connect to them.  That list is very fluid. Check the "Coming Events" section of the website as event news becomes available:

 Coming Events:
Wednesday, August 26
“Clan Cunningham: Skeletons in the Family Closet”  (Monthly Meeting)
10:00 am to 12:00 pm
Online General Meeting

Our guest speaker will be: Pat Adams, VGS President

Description: There were no photos, no stories, no documents except for a baptismal record for her mother. Using that as a starting point, Pat was able to build the family line back to Scotland to her great-great-great grandfather, James Cunningham. Using some direct evidence and a lot of indirect evidence from a variety of records, Pat then assembled James’s family, established when he married and died, and followed his son David’s life till his death in 1900. This case study of the Cunningham family will show how thorough research and correlation of evidence can break through brick walls and bring our family skeletons to life. 

Please register for the general meeting at:


Gen News and Announcements:

Past President Pat Rand Receives the Hartzog Award

National Park Service
"Palo Alto Battlefield NHP is pleased to announce that park volunteer Pat Rand was awarded the Regional Hartzog Enduring Service Award for 2020
The Hartzog Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service recognizes the exemplary contributions of these very important people. Former NPS director George Hartzog, Jr. and his wife Helen created a fund to support awards that honor the efforts of volunteers who go beyond the normal call of duty."

New Free Historical Records on FamilySearch: Week of 17 August 2020

FamilySearch
"This week FamilySearch added 500K more records to collections for Brazil, Canada, England, Fiji, Mexico, Micronesia, Peru, Puerto Rico, S. Africa, Sweden, and Zambia. Two new US collections invite discoveries in Arizona, Cochise Voting Records 1882–1932, and Arizona, Mohave Voting Records, 1876–1920, plus 500K more Indiana Marriages 1811–1932. Other US collections added records for AZ, CA, HI, ID, IN, IA, MS, NC, PA, TX, UT, VA and WA."

How to Search United States Passport Records:

FamilySearch
"Have you ever wondered if your ancestors traveled? If they did, they may have applied for a passport. A passport was not mandatory in the United States for travel outside the country until 1941, except for in short periods during the Civil War and World War I. However, if your ancestor did apply for a passport, the information on the US passport record could be substantial."

Attended My First Virtual Conference: Success!

Kitty Cooper
"I learned much more than usual from my first completely online conference, the 2020 IAJGS conference on Jewish Genealogy. Perhaps because there were fewer distractions: no seat-mates for example"
Editor's Note: The 2021 VGS Annual Seminar will be a virtual conference.
 with Amy Johnson Crow as our guest speaker.

What are "new" records on genealogy websites?

Genealogy's Star
"The large online genealogy database/family tree websites regularly advertise that they have new records for their users to search. What does this really mean? Let me give a few examples."

Pennsylvania Online Historical Newspapers Summary

The Ancestor Hunt
"Pennsylvania is one of the states that has several central state-wide online repositories for searching historical newspapers. Several states use the Library of Congress Chronicling America site as their main online site for searching old newspapers. Pennsylvania does have many online newspapers available on that site. Pennsylvania currently also has its online availability from different websites and they house hundreds of newspapers. Many are free and many require a subscription. Below is a list of where the titles are stored and the link so that you can access them."

Free Online Pennsylvania City Directories:

The Ancestor Hunt
"Links to these free collections are presented initially with statewide collections, followed in alphabetical order by city or county. Generally, the publishing company is included in the reference to the collection, along with the collection title, and the date(s) of the directory:"

Technology:

Does Private or Incognito Mode Make Web Browsing Anonymous?

How-to Geek
"Private is a relative term. This is abundantly clear when it comes to “private browsing”—the setting in a web browser that supposedly allows you to hide your history from others who use the same computer."
Continue reading...

Education:

Top Five Reasons to Cite Your Sources in Your Genealogy:

Ancestral Findings
"Are you citing your sources in your genealogy research? If you are not, you should be. Citing sources may seem like a chore, but there are some very important reasons to make sure you always do it. Here are the five top reasons why you should cite your sources in your genealogy work."
Listen now... 4.27 minutes

Webinars:

How to Use MyHeritage DNA Results to Enhance Your Family Tree:

Legacy Family Tree
"This webinar will demonstrate how MyHeritage's DNA test can help confirm the accuracy of and solve mysteries in your family tree. Michelle will provide her top tips on using MyHeritage's DNA platform and tools and offer practical guidance on the best steps to take to succeed on your DNA journey."
Tuesday, August 25, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Michelle Leonard
Learn more or Register for this event...

Slack for Genealogy Projects:

Legacy Family Tree
"Whether you’re a professional genealogist trying to manage multiple clients and projects or just trying to juggle your own personal research, you may need to move beyond your current management tools. Slack is a FREE online collaboration hub (web-based and app) that is used by major corporations as well as non-profit organizations and individuals to manage and improve workflow."
Wednesday, August 26, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Thomas MacEntee
Learn more or Register for this event...



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Saturday, July 25, 2020

VGS News & Events: July 26 through August 1, 2020

Practice Social-Distancing

Due to Covid-19, no Rec Center meetings until further notice. Some SIG's are having virtual meetings. Be on the lookout for emails announcing the meetings and how to connect to them.  That list is very fluid. Check the "Coming Events" section of the website as event news becomes available:

 Coming Events:
No meetings planned for this week that I have been made aware of. Be on the lookout for any meeting announcements sent directly to SIG members.

Gen News and Announcements:

New Free Historical Records on FamilySearch: Week of 13 July 2020

FamilySearch
"Find a key part of your genealogical puzzle in nearly one million new Find A Grave indexed records on FamilySearch. Explore Ecuador Church Records 1565–2011, and Uruguay Passenger Lists 1888–1980, just waiting to be discovered, along with thousands more from Austria. Brazil, Chile, England, Germany Mexico, Peru, S. Africa and Spain. The United States collections were expanded for Arizona, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Iowa, Minnesota, Mississippi, Pennsylvania and Virginia."
Search now...

New Free Historical Records on FamilySearch: Week of 20 July 2020

FamilySearch
"Find amazing discoveries in 3.7 million new indexed United States Newspaper Obituaries and trace immigrant ancestors in new, searchable New Orleans, Louisiana, passenger list records. Find additional records for Austria, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, England, Fiji, Honduras, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, S. Africa, and Wales. Search added records for CA, CT, HI, IL, MS, NJ, NY, NC, PA, and VA."
Search now...

Ancestry security team confident Family Tree Maker vulnerability has not impacted Ancestry’s systems:

Ancestry Blog
"While we no longer have formal affiliation with the company, Family Tree Maker is used by some Ancestry customers to sync family trees between Family Tree Maker software and Ancestry. Based on our investigation, we do not believe that any Ancestry systems or data have been compromised."
Continue reading...

FAMILY TREE MAKER - Data Security Article

MacKiev.com
"We are aware of an article that has been published about the potential for a data breach. We had already identified the vulnerability ourselves and took care of it some time ago, so please rest assured that your data is safe. We are working on a more detailed response that we hope to have posted soon, so please check back here later for more information."
Editor's note: No additional information from MacKiev.com

Genealogy Software Maker Exposes Data on 60,000 Users

info security
"A US tech company that manages popular family tree software has exposed tens of thousands of its users’ personal information online via a misconfigured cloud server, according to researchers.
A team from WizCase led by Avishai Efrat discovered the unsecured Elasticsearch server leaking 25GB of data linked to users of the Family Tree Maker software.

Technology:

Browser Choice Finally Comes to the iPhone with iOS 14:

How-to Geek
"You might think the biggest announcement of WWDC 2020 is Apple ditching Intel processors in favor of first-party silicon, but you’d be wrong. No, the big news is that iOS and iPadOS 14 will finally let you choose your default browser and email apps."
Continue reading...

Education:

Meningioma and DNA Heredity:

Ancestral Findings
"My wife was diagnosed with a meningioma tumor. If you’re interested, here are some of my findings from my brief study on meningioma tumors and DNA heredity testing..."
Listen now...   8.37 minutes

Webinars:

Fabulous Photo Discoveries™ at MyHeritage:

Legacy Family Tree
"Lisa Louise Cooke will show you how to discover photographs of ancestors who currently don’t have photos in your tree using MyHeritage’s exciting Photo Discoveries™ technology. You’ll learn how to add your own photos, and then find and easily add the newly generated photo discoveries to your family tree."
Tuesday, July 28, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Lisa Louise Cooke
Learn more or Register for this event...

Researching a Loyalist Soldier:

Legacy Family Tree
"Approximately one-third of the people living in the Colonies at the time of the Revolution were loyal to the King. During the War some fought in Loyalist units. By the end of the war, most were forced to leave, either north to Canada or back across the ocean. Many filed claims with the British government for failing to protect them from the rebels. Learn about the records of their service and records of their times after the War."
Wednesday, July 29, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Craig R. Scott, MA, CG, FUGA
Learn more or Register for this event...


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Saturday, July 11, 2020

VGS News & Events: July 12 through July 18, 2020

Practice Social-Distancing

Due to Covid-19, no Rec Center meetings until further notice. Some SIG's are having virtual meetings. Be on the lookout for emails announcing the meetings and how to connect to them.  That list is very fluid. Check the "Coming Events" section of the website as event news becomes available.

All remaining regular Monthly Meetings for 2020 will be virtual meetings.

Coming Events:
Monday, July 13
“Anatomy of a Case Study: Steps Used to Write for Yourself or for Publication”  
7:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Live Online Webinar
Our guest speaker will be: Melinda Daffin Henningfield, CG
Please register for the webinar at:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/511879143025381388

Thursday, July 16
German Genealogy SIG Meeting
9:30 am
Live Online Webinar
Dianne Fedderson & Steven Buhrow, coordinators
Topic: Bavaria

Gen News and Announcements:

New Free Historical Records on FamilySearch: Week of 29 June 2020

Family Search
"Discover your ancestors at FamilySearch this week in over 2.5M new indexed New York Land Records; along with new obituary and church census records from Utah, and Native American records from Oklahoma. Explore expanded world collections from Bolivia, Brazil, Canada,  England, France, Peru, S. Africa,  and  Venezuela among others. Search new vital records for California, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio,Pennsylvania and Louisiana as noted below."
Search now...

New Free Historical Records on FamilySearch: Week of 6 July 2020

Family Search
"FamilySearch added 2M more indexed obituaries this week to United States collections, along with 300K Brazilian civil registrations and 200K English church records. New records added for Canada, Chile, Finland, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, S. Africa, and Sweden.  United States additions included: Arizona, California, Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Utah and Virginia."
Search now...

Online Volunteer Opportunity: Help Improve Place-Names:

Family Search
"After a recent update, the improve place-names tool now lets you select specific countries you would like to work on, allowing you to focus on countries you are most familiar with. You can also change place information when it is slightly incorrect to get an updated list of possible standards."
Continue reading...

New Tool is Changing the Way We See Old Photos: Here’s How to Use It

Family History Daily
"MyHeritage has created two new photo enhancing tools to help you get to know your ancestors in a whole new way. MyHeritage in Color, coupled with the site’s new Photo Enhancer technology, can transform your old family photos into sharp and vibrant images that reveal previously-hidden details."
Continue reading...

“Earliest Known Ancestors” at Family Tree DNA in 3 Easy Steps

DNAeXplained
"Why should you take the time to complete the information about your earliest known ancestor, your EKA, at Family Tree DNA?
The answer is simple – because it helps you with your genealogy and it helps others too."
Continue reading...

Tool To Find Common Ancestors At GEDmatch

Kitty Cooper
"GEDmatch has just released a tool for its Tier 1 (paid) members that will search for the common ancestor you have with your DNA matches on that site."
Continue reading...

Technology:

How to Make Google Auto-Delete Your Web and Location History:

How-to Geek
"Google collects and remembers information about your activity, including your web, search, and location history. Google now auto-deletes history for new users after 18 months, but it will remember history forever if you previously enabled this feature with the default options."
Continue reading...

Education:

5 Things Every Genealogists Should Know How to Do:

Ancestral Findings
"There are certain skills every genealogist should know. Here are five of the most important ones…"
Listen now...   4.57 minutes

Webinars:

Connecting the Dots – Introduction to Auto Clusters at MyHeritageDNA

Legacy Family Tree
"Genetic network analysis is a powerful approach for interpreting DNA match lists, and MyHeritageDNA has an autocluster tool built into their interface to enable this analysis. Learn how to interpret the results of an autocluster, what a cluster means, types of cluster alliances, and next steps for your cluster analysis."
Tuesday, July 14, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: MyHeritage Webinars
Learn more or Register for this event...

On the Record Trail of My LDS Immigrant Ancestor:

Legacy Family Tree
"Explore unique and fascinating historical records about members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons or LDS) in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Using research on her own ancestor, Sunny Morton will share examples of–and tips for finding–congregational membership records; group immigration resources; missionary diaries; ward minutes, and local histories of areas settled by LDS pioneers."
Wednesday, July 15, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Sunny Morton
Learn more or Register for this event...


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Saturday, May 30, 2020

VGS News & Events: May 31 through June 6, 2020

Practice Social-Distancing
Coming Events:  Due to Covid-19, no Rec Center meetings this coming week. Some SIG's are having virtual meetings. Be on the lookout for emails announcing the meetings and how to connect to them.  This list is very fluid. Check the "Coming Events" section of the website as event news becomes available.
Monday, June 1
RootsMagic Special Interest Group Meeting
2:30 pm to 4:00 pm
Online Webinar
Val Harris Co-Ordinator
"RootsMagic 8 Uodate" - Ken Macomber
Register to attend HERE...

Eastern European Genealogy SIG Meeting
1:00 pm
Online Webinar
Carol Myers & Marie Musialek, coordinators
Register to attend HERE...

Italian SIG Zoom Meetings 
 Monday's at 1:00 p.m.
Contact the Coordinator for more info...

The Villages Meeting Room Update

The Villages Recreation Dept.
"Thank you for returning your resident lifestyle volunteer group intention forms. We will now begin working on best practices to manage the resident lifestyle volunteer groups in this new norm.

Group meetings will not be the same as prior to COVID-19. Your currently scheduled meeting days, times and room capacity will be modified to allow for social distancing, ample time to enter and exit facilities, clean rooms and set-up for the next club/activity. Equipment and supplies will also be limited to protect you and your participants.

The return of resident lifestyle groups will begin in phases in a slow organized manner. Cards and Board Games because of high touch opportunities and social clubs with large participation will be phased in at a later date with restrictive guidelines.

RLVG leaders will meet, in advance of their first meeting, with staff to review new room set-ups and expectations. We appreciate your cooperation, understanding and patience as we work in partnership to navigate and learn new and safer ways to enjoy the lifestyle opportunities here in The Villages."

Gen News and Announcements:

Free Family History Classes and Webinars for June 2020

FamilySearch
"The world famous FamilySearch Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah is offering free webinars for June 2020.   Classes feature topics ranging from the Research Process, Research Help and Searching Records, to The FamilySearch Catalog, Dutch Handwriting, England Records, Best Practices for Nordic Research, and Oregon Land Records."
Check the List...

4 Changes to the Search Experience that Make It Easier to Find Records, Attach to Family Tree:

FamilySearch
"Searching records on FamilySearch.org has never been easier! The latest updates to FamilySearch’s search experience improve the ability to refine searches, find record collections, and standardize record dates attached to persons on the Family Tree."
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The Handy 10-Point Checklist Every Family Historian Needs:

FindMyPast
"So you're ready to get started on your family tree? Are you sure you've gathered together all the information you need? A little bit of preparation can make all the difference in the early stages of family research."
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Who Is My great Great Grandfather’s Daddy? A ThruLines Experiment

Kitty Cooper
"My great great grandfather Jørgen Oleson Wold, 1816-1892, from Skougar near Drammen, Norway, was born 9 years before his parents tied the knot. Although his father is listed as the man his mother eventually married, DNA testing has stirred up my doubts."
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The Basic Steps in Cleaning Up the FamilySearch Family Tree:

Genealogy's Star
"Whether you are currently deeply involved in researching and adding new names to the FamilySearch.org Family Tree or just now beginning to learn about how to sign on, we all have the same basic challenges."
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Technology:

How Your iPhone’s New COVID-19 Exposure Notifications Work:

How-to Geek
"Apple and Google have created a new digital framework for contact tracing for the COVID-19 pandemic that works around an Exposure Notifications API. Apple is rolling out an Exposure Notifications feature and API in the iOS 13.5 update for iPhone. But what exactly does it do?"
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Education:

Everything You Need to Know About the 1890 US Federal Census:

Ancestral Findings
"The 1890 census is famous for not being here for genealogists to use. At least, most of it is not available. There are a few fragments that still exist. If you are lucky enough to have ancestors in surviving portions of the 1890 census, here is what you can find in it…"
Listen now...  8.18 minutes

Webinars:

Sources for Landed and Titled People:

Legacy Family Tree
"Learn what original, published and internet sources are available for tracing your “upper crust” ancestors, those who are titled and/or owned land. Prove those connections to Royalty."
Tuesday, June 2, 2020 at 10:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Paul Milner
Learn more or Register for this event...

"What are the Odds?" An online tool that can help solve DNA puzzles

Legacy Family Tree
"When working with DNA for family history research, there are many scenarios where a "mystery match" will emerge. This person will share DNA with several people within a known tree, while their genealogical connection to the tree is not known. They could be someone with unknown or mistaken parentage, or simply an uncommunicative match. This webinar will show how "What are the Odds?" (WATO) can guide you towards answers to puzzles like these."
Wednesday, June 3, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Jonny Perl
Learn more or Register for this event...


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Saturday, May 2, 2020

VGS News & Events: May 3 through May 9, 2020

Practice Social-Distancing
Coming Events:  Due to Covid-19, no Rec Center meetings in May. Some SIG's are having virtual meetings. Be on the lookout for emails announcing the meetings and how to connect to them or go to "Coming Events" for  more details.  These are the meetings scheduled for May as of this posting.

Monday, May 4
Jewish Genealogy SIG Meeting
10:00 am
Zoom Meeting
Herb Siegel, Coordinator
Phil Goldsmith, Programs
Zoom Meeting - Contact the coordinator for login information

Monday, May 4, 11, 18 & 25
Italian Genealogy SIG Meeting
1:00 pm
Mary Frances Gerace, Coordinator
They are currently holding ZOOM meetings each Monday the 1:00 p.m.
Contact the coordinator for login information

Tuesday, May 5
Adoption & Mystery Kin SIG Meeting
9:30 am
Zoom Meeting
Anne Berg & Marcella Zorn, Co-coordinators
Zoom Meeting - Contact the coordinator for login information

Monday, May 11
“I Remember Mama—But Not Her Maiden Name”  (Evening Live Webinar)
7:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Online Webinar
Our guest speaker will be: Mary Kircher Roddy, CG
Description: Women can be hard to identify.  If they married, they probably changed their names.  See more than 20 great strategies for finding the maiden name of "troublesome" women in your family's past - and a few more strategies for discovering married names for those sisters, daughters and aunts who have "disappeared."   Please register for the webinar HERE...
Tuesday, May 12
Preserving Family History SIG Meeting  (Preserving Family History)
2:00 pm
Online Webinar
Tom Sodeman and Nancy Schultz , Coordinators
Topic: "Blending Social History With Family History" 
Presenter: Nancy Flanagan Schultz
Description: It's a challenge to make your family history research interesting to read. It's nearly impossible to learn details about what your family was actually experiencing. Learn how to enrich your family narrative by researching 'social history' gathered from a variety of background sources to enhance your story. Please register for the webinar HERE...
Thursday, May 14
German Genealogy SIG Meeting
9:30 am
Online Webinar
Dianne Fedderson & Steven Buhrow, coordinators
Presentation: "What Makes German Genealogy so Challenging & Your Tools to Overcome the Hurdles"
Presenter: Bernhard Guenther: Please register for the webinar HERE...

Tuesday, May 19
Family Tree Maker SIG Meeting
Online Webinar
John DeAngelo, Co-Coordinator
Presentation: "Setting Up Family Tree Maker for the New User"
Description: Have you recently purchased Family Tree Maker and don't know where to begin? Or, have you been using Ancestry.com for your research and want to download your tree into Family Tree Maker? Learn these and other ways to access your data using Family Tree Maker.  We will also cover the correct methods to add your names, dates and places into your software. Please register for the webinar HERE...
Wednesday, May 20
Mid-Atlantic States SIG Meeting
10:00 am
Online Webinar
Karen Pickelsimer, Coordinator.
Presentation: "Digging Deeper into FamilySearch"
Presenter: Annette Burke Lyttle
Please register for the webinar HERE... 

Wednesday, May 27
VGS General Monthly Meeting  (Monthly Meeting)
10:00 am
Via Online Webinar
Presenter: Drew Smith
Topic: “Your Ancestor’s Fan Club: Using Cluster Research to Get Past Brick Walls”
Description: Our ancestors were each surrounded by family, associates, and neighbors. By researching them, we discover additional records pointing to our own ancestors.  Please register for the webinar HERE...

Gen News and Announcements:

Online Database With 26 Million Documents On Nazi Victims, Survivors Now Online:

JNS
"The world’s most comprehensive archive on the victims and survivors of Nazi persecution reached a “milestone” on Tuesday by publishing 26 million documents to its online database, including new information on forced laborers and deported Jews."
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Connecting the Dots: What Constitutes Genealogical Proof?

Legacy Tree Genealogists
"How do we know when we have compiled enough evidence to constitute proof? Is a birth certificate or an autosomal DNA test result sufficient to declare this person is the child of that person? Must we collect every record regarding an individual – the deeds, the tax lists, the newspaper clippings, the census reports – before we can declare a familial connection?"
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A Modern Myth: My Genealogy is Complete and Accurate

Genealogy's Star
"For the past 38 years, I have been examining hundreds of thousands of names in pedigrees compiled by thousands of people acting as genealogists and researchers. I have yet to ever find even one completely accurate and consistently source supported family tree. Period."
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Experience That Make It Easier to Find Records—FamilySearch Update:

FamilySearch
"Searching records on FamilySearch.org has never been easier! The latest updates to FamilySearch’s search experience improve the ability to refine searches, find record collections, and standardize record dates attached to persons on the Family Tree."
Continue reading... 

2020 Family History Conference Now Virtual:

FamilySearch
"Due to the continued spread of COVID-19 across the nation, and out of concern for the health and safety of our attendees and staff, the National Genealogical Society (NGS) 2020 Family History Conference will now be online only."
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The Powerful Genealogy Hints Tool You’ve Probably Never Used:

Family History Daily
"If you have done family history research for any length of time, you are most likely familiar with Ancestry’s amazing hints tool – which allows users to harness the research they have already done to make new discoveries more easily. But Ancestry is not the only site that offers this service to its members. There are a number of genealogy services that offer a similar tool and MyHeritage is one of our favorites."
Continue reading... 

Technology:

How to Copy or Move Files and Folders on Windows 10:

How-to Geek
"Windows offers many ways to copy and move files. We’ll show you all the tricks for File Explorer, and how to use them in Command Prompt and PowerShell. You can even add “Copy to” and “Move to” to File Explorer’s context menus."
Continue reading... 

Education:

8 Things New Genealogists Waste Money On:

Ancestral Findings
"New genealogists often make the mistake of spending money on things they really don't need. You can do perfectly good, professional-quality research without spending a fortune. If you are just starting out in genealogy, make sure you're spending your genealogy money on things that can really make a difference for your research and not these 8 things that are a total waste of your research funds..."
Listen now...  4:53 minutes

Webinars:

Smarter Search Strategies for Genealogy:

Legacy Family Tree
"We’ll progress to understanding specific search parameters for specific sites. Next, we’ll discuss whether it is worth the time to track searches as well as how to keep track of all the best ways of searching for a specific site. Finally, we’ll explore different wildcard characters and search methodology to get the most out of a website."
Tuesday, May 5, 2020 at 10:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Thomas MacEntee
Learn more or Register for this event...

Crème de la crème: Targeted Autosomal DNA Testing to Isolate Pertinent Genetic Cousins

Legacy Family Tree
"Genetic Genealogy may be helpful for overcoming your genealogy brick wall, but how do you even start to determine which of those thousands of genetic cousins are pertinent to your particular research question? Targeted testing and collaboration to increase coverage, and filter testing can help in isolating the most important matches for your case. Once you have multiple tests available for analysis, your odds of success increase."
Wednesday, May 6, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
Presenter: Paul Woodbury
Learn more or Register for this event...


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